Wednesday, February 3, 2010

From Concentrate: Zingerman's U

"If you live within twenty miles of Ann Arbor you are undoubtedly familiar with the Zingerman's brand. What began as a humble delicatessen in 1982 has since grown into a $30 million artisanal empire that includes a creamery, a bakery, a restaurant, a deli, a market, a coffee roasting outlet, a candy manufactory, as well as steady catering and mail order business. And along with its yummy foodstuffs Zingerman's also exports its philosophies and practices to other businesses for a fee. In a very expensive nutshell, the company has made a name for itself with its strict adherence to exceptional quality, subscribing to standards that most of its competitors don't even bother trying to aspire to.

'The end result is often products that are outstanding examples of their particular variety—robust yet delicate coffees, tender pie crusts filled with pricey lard, cheese made from an antiquated recipe no other creamery in the world uses. Quality is emphasized and underscored so much that the resulting product can seem inaccessible, even intimidating, to the fledgling connoisseur.

'It's okay: there's an app for that…er…rather, a program at Zingerman's to educate the eager gourmand!..."